Graft slur on teachers

Students of several schools have resorted to highway blockades, ransacking of institutions and misbehaving with teachers in protest against alleged irregularities in the implementation of a government welfare scheme.

According to government directives, a student with 75 per cent attendance and above is entitled for grants to buy school uniform.

On Monday, several students of Lakshminarayan High School, Malikpur in Pirpainty block blocked NH-80 at Sharmari Bazaar. They set benches and desks on fire.

Similarly, students of Government Primary School, Sahebganj, and their guardians blocked roads near the institute.

Bindeshwari Yadav, a resident of Pirpainty block, said: "My sons regularly go to school but the teachers claimed that their attendance was poor. Who has given them the power to amass the money?"

Several students, who did not get the grant, have been staging blockades for around a week in protest against the alleged irregularities in the scheme. They accused the teachers of amassing the money meant for them.

The teachers regretted that they were being attacked because "of adherence to government directives".

"The students are blaming us but we are only acting according to the government's directives," said Pramod Kumar, a teacher at Bihpur, where students had locked up their teachers in classrooms recently. "Additional responsibilities like arranging mid-day meal and construction of buildings increase our problems,"said another teacher.

District magistrate Prem Singh Meena said: "A report on the vandalism by the students and the guardians would be compiled and sent to the government after January 25. Strict vigil is being maintained at the schools."

--

Get stories like this on the Yahoo app and discover more every day.Download it now.